Roundup: Downey, Central Catholic baseball go perfect, will meet in tourney championship

Nearly 20 Stanislaus District baseball and softball teams saw action Friday in tournaments and other non-league games.

Central Catholic, Enochs and Downey teamed up to host a two-day March Madness preseason baseball tournament Friday and Saturday. The opening matchups of the tournament were electric with Turlock taking on Central Catholic, Downey playing Merced and Enochs facing El Capitan.

The Knights and Raiders had a successful Day 1 and will meet in the tournament championship Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at Downey.

Oakdale, the No. 1 ranked team in the section early in the season by MaxPreps, took on Lodi for the highlight of a slate of competitive non-league matchups.

In softball, the Rainbow High School Showcase continued with Enochs, Big Valley Christian and Patterson looking for wins. The tournament ends Saturday with Central Catholic, Downey and Pitman returning to action.

Ripon looked to stay unbeaten and show why it is the top team in the section, according to the MaxPreps rankings.

Here is a list of all Stanislaus District baseball and softball matchups from Friday’s action:

Baseball

Central Catholic 3, Turlock 1: TP Wentworth got the start and Joe Salacup and Fernando Alaniz saw time on the mound as the Raiders opened their season with a win in the March Madness baseball tournament. Wentworth was credited with the win, and Alaniz earned the save. AJ Miligi and Trace Hernandez were credited with an RBI apiece.

Downey 14, Merced 4: Jaxen Rowland tallied three hits in five at bats including a two-run home run in the sixth inning to put the finishing touches on a 10-run win in the Knights’ first matchup of the March Madness baseball tournament. Noah Cruz drove in a team-high three runs and had three hits. Colin Nilsson added a pair of RBI.

Downey 5, Placer 1: Downey won its second tournament game of the day, jumping out to an early lead with a four-run bottom of the first. Senior Aiden Larson threw the best game of his career, striking out 12 in a complete game effort to send the Knights to the March Madness tournament championship.

El Capitan 3, Enochs 1: The Eagles’ offense could not figure out Gauchos sophomore pitcher Matthew McQuillen, who struck out 11 batters Friday. John Ramirez pitched and drove in the Eagles only run of the game.

Turlock 15, Enochs 3: The Bulldogs and Eagles had a CCAL preview in the consolation bracket of the March Madness tournament. Turlock put up 10 runs in the third inning to open up a lead. Josh Ramirez had a team-high three hits. Jaron Rocha led the Bulldogs with three RBI. Owen Miller, Carson Gonzales and Andrew Sevilla each drove in a pair. Turlock plays Tokay at 10 a.m. Saturday in the consolation championship.

Central Catholic 8, El Capitan 5: The Raiders won their second game of the day, scoring four runs in the second inning and adding three fourth-inning insurance runs to advance to the March Madness tournament championship Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at Downey.

Mariposa County 10, Hilmar 6: John Labno doubled and drove in a pair of runs to lead the Yellowjackets, but they could not overcome a late surge by the Grizzlies, who scored four runs in the third and three in the fourth and fifth innings each.

Atwater 2, Ripon 1: Dawson Downs tallied two of Ripon’s five hits and drove in the team’s only run in a tight non-league loss. He also pitched six innings and struck out four Falcons. All of the game’s runs were scored in the third inning. Ripon scored in the top half and Atwater answered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning.

East Union 4, Escalon 1: Ryan Murphy grounded out to the pitcher in the sixth inning, but drove in the Cougars’ only run in Friday’s non-league contest against East Union. The Cougars gave up a pair of runs in the first inning and one run in the fourth and sixth innings.

Oakdale 7, Lodi 3: Landon Schutte drove in two runs with a double in his first at bat to help the section’s top team remain perfect on the season. Reid Grandstaff also doubled and drove in a pair of runs, and Carlo Antinetti added an RBI. Jordan Haver struck out nine batters in 4.2 innings of work.

More March Madness Tournament

Saturday

10 a.m. Enochs vs Merced at Enochs

10 a.m. Tokay vs Turlock at Central Catholic (Consolation Championship)

10 a.m. Placer vs El Capitan at Downey (Third Place)

12:30 p.m. Central Catholic vs Downey at Downey (Championship)

Softball

Enochs 5, Lodi 4: Enochs pitcher Natalie Camarena struck out six batters in 5.2 innings and went 3-for-3 at the plate with a home run and a double and had one RBI in the team’s first Friday game at the Rainbow High School Showcase. Janessa Rodriguez was also a perfect 3-for-3 with a double and drove in two runs.

Enochs 5, East Union 1: Natalie Camarena pitched five innings, striking out eight and allowing just one earned run. She also had two hits with a double and drove in two runs. Lailoni Booker and Alaina Calvo also had two hits.

Lodi 3, Big Valley Christian 2: The Lions played Lodi close at the Rainbow High School Showcase. After falling behind 2-1 after three innings, Big Valley tied the game with a run in the top of the fourth, but an RBI double in the bottom of the fifth sealed the win for Lodi.

Patterson 3, Big Valley Christian 2: In their second close contest of the day, The Lions once again lost by just one run. Patterson scored once in the top of the third and added a pair of runs in the top of the fourth. The Lions pulled within one, scoring twice in the bottom of the fourth, but could not score again before the game was called in the fifth inning due to time. Patterson’s Elizabeth Zavala drove in a pair of runs and Haleigh Pearce added one RBI.

Patterson 3, Beyer 2: Patterson scored all three of its runs against Beyer in the first inning as the earned one of their three wins this season. Beyer scored twice in the bottom of the third inning but could not extend the game.

East Union 3, Beyer 1: Chelsee Toon struck out 13 for Beyer, but the Patriots were unable to find their offensive groove at Rainbow Fields. Beyer scored its only run of the game in the second inning.

Ripon 8, Atwater 2: Jaycee Wilmshurst recorded three hits with a double and drove in a run while Alana Hernandez and Addison Naranjo added a pair of hits for Ripon. Hernandez drove in two runs, and Naranjo added an RBI. Kharime Caratachea pitched all seven innings, earning the win and recording 13 strikeouts.

Hughson 12, Ripon Christian 2: Freshman Kylie Tangney went 3-for-3 and drove in three runs for the Huskies as they beat the Knights in five innings. Sophomores Grace Curry and Presley Wells combined for 12 strikeouts and allowed just two hits in the game.

More Rainbow High School Classic

Wednesday

Riverbank 24, McNair 0

Riverbank 11, Summerville 1

Pitman 11, Bear Creek 1

Pitman 16, McNair 0

Edison 13, Davis 5

Thursday

Merced 11, Escalon 4

Benicia 15, Escalon 3

Turlock 13, Calaveras 2

Buhach Colony 4, Downey 3

Turlock 9 Los Banos 1

Los Banos 3, Downey 1

Saturday

Central Catholic vs Central Valley

Central Catholic vs Patterson

Merced vs Patterson

Downey vs Millennium

Downey vs Livingston

McNair vs Davis

Pitman vs Edison

Pitman vs Davis

Riverbank vs Edison

Riverbank vs Bear Creek